A Cold and Windy April Night

Friday night is Starbucks, shopping and thrifting.  Michael settles in at Starbucks with a good book and coffee. I do the other stuff and join him when I'm finished. 

Where I live, Mother Nature had a fun time on the first Friday of April. Sunny but cold with a good dose of wind, some folks probably would have revolted, worn flower prints, cut offs, and flip flops. But for me, it was just one more time to wear one of my wool Fedoras!

I could call this my menswear look with a bit of vintage whimsy. As usual, it's a bit of new, thrifted, and vintage.

My Fedora is new by DPC, with the color "putty". I picked it up at my favorite KC hat store Exclusively For You.  

The pricey-looking navy jacket (Collections for Le Suit) with tan and grey pinstripes is another great thrifty find. I know originally it was part of some ensemble but by the time it made it to the thrift store it was all by its lonesome--and not expensive!

My jeans are Madewell skinnies and I got them at a Madewell. Expensive, yes but I have one pair and they look great every time I wear them. Madewells do not stretch or bag and they fit my body type great. Yes, I love, love, love them. 

Now for the purse. It's part of my vintage collection and is a Furla. I liked the color, simplicity and the length of the straps. From eBay and is the only Furla I own. 

The Oxfords are Nine West and I did get them from Nine West. They have this almost crochet interest that I love. 

And now for the whimsy. I have a collection of vintage Poodle scarfs. They range from classic to Bob Mackie bright. The one I am wearing with this ensemble is probably my favorite. It is a double woven jacquard in silk from France. It is a tad hard to see in the photos above so I created a still life below to show the two-color weave of my scarf and the knot work of the oxfords.  

Finally to my nails. I've been wearing quite a bit of blue lately. My latest is from an Australian Indie by the name of MckFresh and this is their Mermish Tales. This is a scattered holo and is just gorgeous, especially in natural sunlight.

Oh, and a quick report on my shopping gems that night. At Salvation Army I found a black wool crepe shift dress that will be great next Fall. I just need to fiddle with the hem a bit. Also scored was a wool Herringbone vest from Harvé Benard and some Top Shop flats. Kohls had some of their hats on clearance and I found a grey straw Fedora mixed in with all the winter hats. Needless to say, I snapped it up!

Here I am wearing my new hat and vest the very next day. Typical of Missouri, the temps were about 15 degrees warmer. The Poodles (I'm holding Sophia) and I were on our way to watch the boys in Joplin.

That's it for today. Here's to warmer days and take care until we meet again. 

Terri

Today, I am linking up with  Patti's Not Dead Yet Style's Visible Monday HERE, Cherie's  Style Nudge's Shoe and Tell HERE, Nicole's High Latitude Style Linkup HERE, Catherine's Not Dressed As Lamb's I will Wear What I like HERE,
Color and Grace's Link Up Party HERE, Elegantly Dressed and Stylish Turning Heads Tuesday HERE,
Shopping My Closet's Style Me Wednesday HERE, Sydney's Fashion Hunter's Fresh Fashion Forum HERE and
and Fashion Should Be Fun's Fun Friday Fashion Link Up HERE and Style Diary By Osy's Friday Link Up Party HERE.

Hats and Wraps

When the Joplin School District had Spring Break, Michelle hired her fill-in veterinarian and brought the boys for five days to spend at the farm. They also went to Kansas City (we are just one hour away) to spend time with her sister and to pick up some culture. Our son-in-law is the clinic's office manager and stayed to man the ship and keep everything running smoothly.

During Michelle's visit, we sewed, knitted, ate and had a great time. She taught me how to use our jointly owned serger which I had been putting off. I will use it in the future and when I actually make something on it, I will let everyone know!

We ended their trip with a few pictures for the fun of it. They were just in time for Judith's Style Crone's April Hat Attack. 

I fell in love with this vintage pillbox on eBay and really didn't worry if I had a place to wear it. It does seem to be wool and the label says Bellini Original. I don't know to much about hat makers but did find some other Bellini hats on ETSY. I always like to find out some history of a vintage item or the company that made it, but I came up with nothing. I probably just need to look a little harder.

I saw what Michelle brought to wear for the picture and then with hat in hand headed to the closet to style something that would go with her. In the end, we went with the black/gray/pink tones. With us, as usual, it's a bit of the new, vintage and refashioned.

Michelle's top is from Mimu Maxi out of New York. Their line is a minimalist style and made in the USA. With it, she is wearing what is called a "skirt legging". This one is refashioned from a very stretch A-line skirt that she thrifted. The shoes are mine. I liked that their abstract pattern matched the pattern in her printed scarf. 

And now to me for a bit. 

I've already talked about my hat. The jacket is a pink, grey and black chenille textured that I thrifted. I picked this up about two years ago on my first excursion to thrift shops with Michelle. My pants are old ( six years maybe?) Charter Club silks that I altered to reflect my changing taste. They were very wide legged and baggy originally. My shoes are my trusty neutral Nine Wests that I wear a lot in the Spring.

A close up of Michelle's wrap. This child has an incredible amount of scarfs. After 100, I think she lost count. She gets them new, used, from here, there and everywhere. From what I've seen her do, this is a simple style. She only used two scarfs and no jewelry.
I fell in love with two of her Wrapunzel scarfs and had to go online and order a couple to style with my wardrobe. I gave a link to Deep Ocean one of the most gorgeous scarfs I have ever seen and is one of those I purchased.

My top under the jacket was just so-so 

and as I do a lot, added a scarf and tied 

it into a bow.

Just a close up

Our oldest grandson William with our 

oldest daughter Michelle.

He is taller that she is now.

 How fast they grow up!

The last two weeks have spoiled me. Posting with the girls is so much fun. Next week I will be all my myself. 

And closing with some sweet eye candy. Michelle enjoys making and decorating cakes. She follows quite a few Australian cake makers on YouTube. She made this one for her Dad. He lives up to our last name and is the gardener of the family. This recipe had rose water among the ingredients and was heaven on a fork!

Take care until next time. 

Today, I am linking up with  Judith of The Style Crone's Hat Attack HERE, Patti's Not Dead Yet Style's Visible Monday HERE, Cherie's  Style Nudge's Shoe and Tell HERE, Catherine's Not Dressed As Lamb's I will Wear What I like HERE, Color and Grace's Link Up Party HERE, Elegantly Dressed and Stylish Turning Heads Tuesday HERE, Shopping My Closet's Style Me Wednesday HERE and Sydney's Fashion Hunter's Fresh Fashion Forum HERE, Fashion Should Be Fun's Fun Friday Fashion Link Up HERE and Style Diary By Osy's Friday Linkup Party HERE.

Over-Dressed-The Shockingly High Cost Of Cheap Fashion

This is a republication of a book review I did three years ago. I still think this is a very important book for anyone who wants to dress well with a conscience. As I mention in my original article, I remember when fashion was an investment and you made careful choices. Many of us learned to sew to dress for less and I still use this skill today. It is no longer a money saver but a great way for expression and self satisfaction. So here goes the original article..........

 

As someone long interested in design and fashion, I put Elizabeth L. Cline’s Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost Of Cheap Fashion on my “have to read” list just after its publication in June of 2012. Once in my hands, I could not put it down. Cline gave words to impressions that my heart suspected. When I was happily getting good deals for clothes at TJ Maxx or Target, my head ignored my heart’s vague discomfort. I didn’t care to think or know about what was behind those dramatically low prices.

Cline clarifies how those good deals were not only bad for me but for a lot of other people—and our earth.

Beginning about 1990, retailers began playing a sort of “Race To The Bottom” game. Retailers began moving their garment manufacturing mostly to China where workers were plentiful and wages were low. Manufacturing costs were so low that those retailers then had a marked competitive edge over domestic made goods.

Within about ten years, garment manufacturing in the United States essentially shut down. All the equipment was sold to companies mostly in China. Retailers were able to dramatically change how consumers shopped. Consumers began expecting low prices while accepting low quality. 

Wall-Mart, Target, H and M, Forever 21, Ross, TJ Maxx and the like cleverly trained us to look for “what a great deal” rather than “what a beautiful and well made garment that I will want to wear for years.”

The change in mindset included no longer fitting or altering garments. It is just easier to throw away than to repair or alter.  And throw away we do. There has been such a fluctuation in the used market of clothing that The Salvation Army and other thrifts can only used 20% of what is given to them. Much of what is donated is in too bad of shape for even the third world and is sold to second parties to turn them into rags. Five percent is not even fit for rags; about 41 million tons--is destined for landfills.

There has be a small glimmer of light. In recent years, manufacturing in China became more expensive. Smaller countries just don’t have the people or the set up to handle the massive undertaking involved in garment manufacturing. Thus a small number of companies have resorted to making some of their designs back in the old U.S.A. Carol Kane is one example. I am sure other nations have similar designers participating in similar movements. 

I have noticed a surge of local designers being very visible in Kansas City. There have been various venues created for these talented people to show their work. Facebook and Instagram have been a great way to get the message out too. 


What I Did

To sum up the next few paragraphs. My diet lasted for fourteen months. I fell of the wagon twice and made myself add a month for each time. It was a long haul. It's interesting that I mentioned having more money to spend on nail polish. That turned into an obsession that I am just coming out of. I do much more thrift and consignment shopping than I use to. The quality in these two areas have improved dramatically in the US if you know where to look. I still shop at TJ Maxx and Marshalls but I have scaled it down. Two stores that I have not purchased a clothing item from since reading the book has been Walmart and Target. The quality just isn't there for me.

I am lucky with one aspect. I was born in 1950 and remember a good product and not getting too much of that product. In lieu of that, my Mother taught me to sew.  Those skills have not been forgotten or neglected. I have made a few things the last couple of years. I think I will be making a few more.

Two years ago the movement “The Great American Apparel Diet” was born.  The rules are very simple. Do not buy any new clothes for a year. I have taken this pledge, which started April 12^th. So I have only been on this for a week. There are a few exceptions that I have made.

I can buy material (after I have used the stashed stuff) and any notions needed to finish these pieces. You don’t have to, but I am not buying shoes or bags for a year—with the exception of black flats (one weakness that I’m not going to give up).

I will keep updates on this blog. Refashioning is a new trend and I have plenty of stuff to refashion.I will also feature Michelle's refashioning. She went to the thrift and bought quite a few promising outfits. I can't wait to see what she turns them into.

Taking The Pledge With Me

When I vacationed in Florida, I loaned my book to my oldest daughter. When I returned, she decided to take the pledge with me. I have shown her a few things about sewing over the years and she has already completed a dress. Thank goodness for texting with photos. We re-cut a pattern using our IPhones and the dress fits her beautifully. Michelle has a closet full of thrifted articles that she is going to refashion and that will be an interesting thing to watch.

Some Good Links

Over-Dressed-The Shockingly High Cost Of Cheap Fashion on
At this point you can get a used copy for about $8 which includes shipping.

The Great American Apparel Diet's website-This project began in'09. I feel that it is a pledge that anyone can take at any time. Mine started April 12th, so I am only three weeks into it.

The ReFashionista Blog-Jillian Owens thrifts outfits and remakes them into chic and wearable fashion. It is full of inspiration.

The Good Guide-find products based on science and ethics. Clothing companies are also listed here based on their human relations. 

An Interview with Elizabeth L. Cline by NPR's On Point  when her book was released. 

That is it for this time. I have just finished a sweater using stashed yarn that I can't wait to get on here. Oh yes, I am not buying any new yarn for year also. So everything I feature, will be out of my (massive) stash of yarn. It just gives me more money to spend on nail polish!